Chasing Shadows
by Sparkles and Rainbows
Summary: When a small girl turns up at the ambulance bay, what is she doing there? And what is her connection to one of the staff there?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N this is an idea that I had the other day and wouldn't leave me alone, so I decided to write it up and see what people think of it. Enjoy and please read and review! Xx**

The young child looked around the ambulance bay in awe. This place was massive! She had never seen so many vehicles in one place before and this in itself made the experience slightly overwhelming.

She stood still, only turning her head slightly to get a better view of her surroundings. As she stood there, the girl began to think about why she was there in the first place. A quick look at her wrist answered that question for her; there was no way she was going back there. Not while he was still there and she had a chance of staying with someone better. Taking a deep breath, she reached into her pocket and brought out a crumpled photograph of her half-sister. She knew that the photograph was old but she hoped that it would at least still show some resemblance. 'You don't look nothing like her' she thought, running her finger over the face of the girl in the photograph. She had, even at a young age, a clearly defined heart shaped face and strong features. Her hair was shoulder length and curly.

As she stood, lost in her thoughts, a woman approached her. The sudden noise of footsteps on the concrete floor made her jump and her instinctive reaction was to jump back, and protectively throw her arms out in front of her. She stared intently at the floor, focusing specifically on a tiny speck of dirt.

"Sorry sweetheart, I didn't mean to startle you. But, you look a bit young to be hanging around here on your own. Is there anyone here with you?" Dixie paused for a moment to allow her time to answer and then continued "Are you looking for someone?" she asked and then paused again. This time, the girl looked up cautiously and nodded but couldn't meet her gaze. She would get into a lot of trouble if her mother found out. "Can you give me a name?" Dixie pressed gently, now starting to wonder who she was and why she was there. Her question was met with a shake of the head and she sighed "Are you in trouble? Are you trying to get away from someone?" after the second question, the child lifted her head and nodded again but still didn't speak.

"Right, love. You're going to have to help me out here" Dixie spoke kindly "What's your name?"

The girl sighed quietly. If she was going to find her half-sister, she was going to have to give her some information "Ellie-Mai" she said, then added "But most people call me Ellie and I'm 6 and a half, almost 7"

"Well, Ellie. My name's Dixie" the older woman smiled at her, glad that she was finally starting to get somewhere "Now, you said that you were trying to get away from someone? Who were you trying to get away from?" At this, Ellie shook her head and turned away from her, choosing instead to run out of the ambulance bay and towards the main hospital car park "Ellie, wait!" Dixie shouted, running after her. Ellie didn't stop, continuing to run. She had to run, he couldn't catch her. He'd make her go back home and then she'd be for it. Her sprint was stopped abruptly when a man grabbed hold of her arm, holding it tightly.

"You little brat!" he spat at her, pulling her so that she was stood next to him "How dare you run off like that? Your mother's been worried sick, wondering where you are!"

Ellie took a deep breath before she replied "No, she hasn't. She couldn't care less about me and you know it!" she instantly regretted her remark as her mother's boyfriend tightened his grip on her arm, dragging her behind him.

Dixie reached the main car park, looking around frantically for the small child, as she had heard her shout at the man. She spotted them in the distance, and began to run towards them "Hey, what do you think you're doing? Let go of her!"

The man, Ryan, ignored her, continuing to drag Ellie towards the road until he stopped by the pavement "Are you sorry for running off?" when he got no answer, he became enraged, shaking the child violently "Answer me!" he screamed "Fine! You know what, me and your mum will be better off without you anyway!" twisting her arm around, he released his grip on the girl and pushed her off the pavement and into the busy road, straight in front of an oncoming ambulance.

"Polly, stop!" Jeff yelled, as he saw the commotion that was seconds away from them. Polly, too, had seen and reacted immediately by slamming on the brakes but it was too late. She stopped the engine and got out, sprinting towards the child "Dixie!" she called over, seeing her walk quickly towards her "What the hell was that? Poor little thing"

Realising that Polly wasn't going to leave the small child in a hurry, Jeff beckoned Dixie to help him grab the kit they would need "Good thing that last call was a hoax, for once" he muttered as they opened the doors.

"I'm so sorry" Polly whispered, holding the child's head still "I stopped as soon as I could, but there wasn't time" on hearing a voice, the girl's eyes opened slightly, looking straight up at the woman. Her vision was blurred, but she could just about make out her face. Her face was heart shaped, and her hair, although a bit shorter and highlighted now, was dark and curly, as it had been in the photograph.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N thank you for all the reviews, follows and favourites so far! This story will have of the same characters from one of my previous stories, A new chapter, but not all details will be the same. Enjoy and please read and review and as ever if you have any ideas on what you would like to see happen feel free to pm me or leave them in a review! Xx**

Polly glanced at the small child and then to the watch that was pinned on her jacket next to her paramedic's badge, giving her a reassuring smile before turning her head and shouting to Dixie "Guys, can we hurry it up please?" looking back to the girl, she took the opportunity to study the girl's features in more detail, noting that her eyes were still open and looking up at her.

Ellie felt scared as she lay on the road, the caring face of the paramedic doing little to reassure her. It was her, that she was certain of, but this hadn't exactly been how she had planned things to go "P-Pol-" she tried to say, but couldn't finish before she started to cough harshly, blood now bubbling up in her mouth and throat. Trying her best to breathe in order to stop coughing, her frightened eyes once again focused on Polly, silently begging her to help her.

"Alright darling, just hang on for me, its okay" Polly spoke quickly, trying to hide her panic as she watched the girl's eyes close and her breathing became laboured "Dixie!" she shouted as she came running over with the kit "Alright Ellie, we just need to get this collar on you and get you on the board and then we can get you into the hospital" she heard Dixie's voice say.

"How do you know her?" Polly asked her quietly as they got Ellie strapped onto the trolley and left Jeff to speak to the police officers who were now also on the scene "Jeff, we're gonna take her straight in, I'll fill you in later" she spoke quickly as they began to walk as quickly as they could towards the hospital entrance.

"Long story, lets get her sorted and then I'll explain" Dixie explained as they walked inside "Zoe!" she beckoned the consultant over who showed them to a bed in resus "This is Ellie-Mai, around 6 and a half years old. She was thrown in front of an ambulance…"

Zoe looked at her incredulously, her brown eyes rolling dramatically in shock "Thrown?! What is wrong with some people?"

"Come on Polly, you can't do anything more for her in here. Let Zoe do her job" Dixie spoke gently to her younger colleague, leading her out of resus and over to two plastic chairs in reception "Polly" she said, causing her to look away from the large double doors and over to her.

"How do you know her?" Polly asked again, repeating her earlier question.

Dixie smiled at her "I don't know her, she turned up in the ambulance bay about 2 hours ago, said she was trying to get away from someone but she wouldn't say who. I must have pushed her too far with my questions because she ran off across the car park, some man grabbed her and the rest you know"

Polly looked at her, tears forming in her eyes "There was nothing else I could have done, it all happened so fast"

*Flashback*

 _Polly, aged 8 years old, looked over at her teacher and signalled to her that her mother was there before slowly starting to walk towards her, her head down._

 _"_ _For goodness' sake, what's the matter with you?" her mother snapped "Don't you ever smile? Lighten up!" the young girl made no attempt to reply, which only infuriated her mother further as she pushed the small child with enough force so that she fell forward onto the pavement, cutting both her knees and grazing her hands._

 _Polly fought back tears as she was hauled to her feet, determined not to cry in front of her. She quickly became aware of multiple pairs of eyes staring at her and looked up to see parents and children watching from a distance. 'Great' she thought 'another reason for them to pick on me'_

 _"_ _What are you all gawping at?" her mother yelled, pushing her daughter in front of her "Polly, move!"_

*End flashback*

Polly sighed, she had suffered abuse as a child and seeing what had happened to Ellie had brought back some unwelcome memories. Who did that to a child? After a few minutes of silence, Zoe came out, smoothing down her dress as she walked towards them "How's Ellie? Is she going to be alright?" Polly asked her immediately, barely giving the consultant a chance to respond.

Zoe nodded slowly, but then put her hand up "She's stable, for now. After the blow to her head, she has suffered significant trauma, but we won't the full extent of the damage until she wakes up. She's under sedation and intubated for the time being, we need to wait for neuro to come and assess her" she looked cautiously at Polly and Dixie before continuing, trying to think of how to phrase what she wanted to say next "Now we don't know anything for sure, but there is evidence of potential earlier abuse. She's covered in cuts and bruises, and not just the usual ones that you would expect from a child of her age…"

"Poor little girl" Polly muttered, looking to her colleague who nodded in agreement "I feel awful, but there was nothing I could have done. I stopped as soon I saw her!"

"I know. There was nothing more you could have done, no-one is blaming you Polly. The police will want to speak to you, but Dixie and Jeff both saw what happened" Zoe paused for a minute, gesturing to the clear plastic bag that she was holding "This was in her pocket, it has your name on it" she said quietly, handing her the crumpled photograph.

The young paramedic studied it closely, half smiling as she saw a much younger version of herself. She turned it over to see her mother's spider like handwriting scrawled on the back 'Polly Emmerson, age 7'. "Where did she get this from?" Polly asked, clearly shocked "I don't even have any childhood photos of me, I left them behind when I was moved to the care home, I didn't want them" she thought for a moment, trying to understand. The only other person who would have them would be her mother, but why had Ellie had it? Were they related? Polly was sure she had seen a resemblance in the young child to herself but in the rush had thought nothing of it.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N again thank you! I wasn't sure what the response to this story would be but it has been very positive so far, hope you all enjoy this chapter! Xx**

Polly stood up, placing the photo into the pocket of her jacket as she once again walked towards the double doors that led into resus. Before Zoe or Dixie could say anything, she had stepped through them and was heading towards the bed where Ellie was lying, motionless "Hello, Ellie" she spoke softly, taking the girl's hand in hers "Its me, Polly. You had better get better, yeah? Don't you worry, we'll make sure that that man gets what's coming to him and you'll be safe, I promise" with that, she let go of her hand and ran a hand through her scruffy hair before turning and exiting the room.

"Ah, just the person" Polly turned when she realised that the consultant was speaking to her and she looked at her, waiting expectantly for what she had to say "Neuro are here, they're ready to take her up to theatre"

The newly qualified paramedic simply nodded as she watched the team of surgeons walk alongside the bed until it disappeared into the lift and out of her line of vision "Where did she get that photo from?" Polly wondered aloud "And why did she have it?" she turned to Dixie, a quizzical look now starting to form on her face "You said she was in the ambulance bay earlier, looking for someone? Did she mention my name?"

Dixie shook her head, as bemused by the whole situation as her colleague was "No, she wouldn't say who she was looking for. That's the first time I've seen that photo, I didn't know she had it"

Sighing in frustration and confusion, Polly sat back down before quickly standing back up again "Do we know her surname?" she asked Dixie who shook her head in response.  
"There is definitely a similarity in your looks though, you can't deny that" Polly nodded, she was right, Ellie did look like her. She had the same heart shaped face and the same wild uncontrollable curly hair, although hers was a little darker than Polly's, as was her skin tone by a couple of shades. Ellie's eyes were a chocolate brown colour, which were framed by long dark eyelashes that enhanced her sense of youth and innocence. When she had looked at her, Polly had noticed how intelligent her eyes looked. Yes, she was young and pretty, but her eyes told a whole different story. She had been through a lot in her young life, that was easy to tell, but she had a look of wisdom about her, something that said she knew a lot more than she let on.

"That's true. I mean, it was definitely my mother's writing on the back of the photo…Zoe, can you do a search on the computer? Just try typing in Ellie-Mai Emmerson and see if anything comes up"

The dark haired consultant nodded her agreement, walking over to one of the computers that were situated over at the nurses' area "Right, lets see…Ellie-Mai Emmerson…there we go, there's a match. Pol, look at this" she said, beckoning them over "That's her, yeah? And…April? That's your mother, right?"

Polly looked at her and laughed bitterly before turning her attention to the computer screen "Only by blood. But the father…that's not a name I recognise "Lukas Philangea…nope, definitely not. Poor girl, she's got her for a mother. I can't vouch for the dad, but unless her taste in men has changed…"

Dixie, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly spoke up "So same mum, different dads. That would make Ellie your…half-sister?" she glanced at Polly briefly to see what her reaction would be.

"Yeah, I guess it does. I'll have to get in touch with social services, make sure she doesn't end up going back home once she's out of here"

Now sat outside Ellie's room on ITU after waiting for hours for her to come out of surgery, Polly looked up when the surgeon walked over to them. Zoe had had to go back to work but promised to visit when she got the chance. Dixie was still with her and Jeff had gone upstairs as soon as she had told him where they were "Polly, isn't it?" the surgeon asked, smiling gently at her as he took a seat opposite her "As a direct result of her very severe head injury, Ellie has also suffered some injuries to her brain. The most noticeable of these was to her occipital lobes, which are concerned with her vision. I'm afraid that it is highly likely that Ellie will have some degree of visual impairment, which may or not be treatable. There was also damage to other areas of the brain; Ellie may also have problems with her movement and co-ordination amongst other issues, but we'll know more when she wakes up"

Polly took a deep in, taking in what she had just been told "Thank you. Can I see her?" she had just spoken to Ellie's new social worker who had agreed to let the young girl stay with her after she was discharged from the hospital. Her house was going to be busy she thought, with her girls Isabel and Nieve, now 4 years old and due to start in reception that September, and their 2 year old springer spaniel Toffee. She wasn't with Alex anymore, they still kept in contact but the relationship hadn't worked out "I'm going to go and see her, at least then there will be someone that she recognises when she wakes up"

With promises to call once she knew anything, Polly said goodbye to her colleagues and walked into the small side room, sighing sadly when she saw the state of the young child "Ellie?" she called out softly as she approached the bed "Ellie-Mai?" she smiled when she noticed the girl's eyelids fluttering open, trying to look around and locate the source of the sound. She tried to move her head and whimpered quietly when it hurt to do, her eyes still darting around, seemingly unable to focus on her although she was stood not too far away from her.  
"Alright darling" Polly soothed her, quickly sitting next to her and holding her hand "Try not to move for me, good girl" Polly noticed how quickly she had calmed down once she was able to see the older girl, although she kept squinting and blinking rapidly and her fingers twitched restlessly inside Polly's grip, a look of confusion on her face.

Ellie looked at her, trying desperately to focus on her half-sister without her vision being blurred "Polly" she croaked slowly "can't see. Why?" she paused for a moment "Ow! Eyes hurt" she tried to explain, struggling to find the words. Polly felt sorry for her, she was clearly confused and frightened and her lack of vision must have been disorientating. She smiled re-assuringly at her, squeezing her hand, but inside she was seething. How dare that man do this to her? She was 6 and a half, she has her whole life ahead of her, but because of him, her life could be completely different. She shook her head, dreading to think what abuse she had been subjected to. She only wished that she had known about Ellie earlier, then she could have done something to help her. 


	4. Chapter 4

Polly glanced over to the now sleeping child. The hospital bed that she was lying in looked far too big for her, but her tiny frame didn't help.

At least she was being taken away from her mother, that was something at least. There was not even a single strand of doubt in the woman's mind that she would be better off without her. April had never acted as a motherly figure towards Polly as a child and she doubted that it would be any different for Ellie.

She looked up when she heard movement coming from Ellie's bed but didn't go over immediately in case she was simply moving in her sleep, choosing instead to watch her for a few moments. She watched as Ellie began to wake up, stretching and yawning before lying still again, looking up at the ceiling. A small moan of frustration escaped the girl's lips as she opened her eyes and blinked rapidly in an attempt to clear her clouded and blurry vision but it made no difference. Her tiny fingers on her uninjured left hand moved rapidly around the bed, opening and closing several times as she tried to figure out her surroundings and work out where she was. Several questions flashed though her head at once. Where was she? Where was Polly? Would she be safe here? Did her mother and Ryan know that she was here? Did they even care?

A tear slid down her cheek, which didn't go unnoticed by her half-sister. Polly decided that she should give her some space, she hadn't called out to her and she seemed to be lost in her own world for the time being.

*Flashback*

 _Aged just 18 months old, Polly was alone in the house. Again. It was the third time in as many days and each time her mother was out for longer than the last. Other than a small beaker of juice and a biscuit left on the living room table, there was nothing for the young toddler to eat or drink._

 _The same could be said for stimulation and entertainment. The small house contained very few toys, books or games suitable for children and Polly quickly got bored with wandering around. "Mummy?" she called out hopefully, walking over to the window that was quite low down and that she could look out of._

 _Bored, and thinking that outside looked far more exciting than her living room, Polly opened the back door with ease and walked barefoot into the garden. She toddled across the long grass, suddenly shrieking in pain and shock when a nettle stung her on her foot and ankle._

 _Without anyone to comfort her, she scratched at the sting but only succeeded in making it worse. She promptly burst into tears, which quickly turned into frustrated and tired wailing as tears ran down her grubby face._

 _"_ _Polly?" the young child looked around to see the kind face of her neighbour, Judith, watching her with concern "What's the matter?" the toddler didn't respond, just cried louder and walked over to the fence where she was stood, holding up her arms to be picked up._

 _Judith picked her up and Polly buried her head in her shoulder, now sniffling quietly and twisting the woman's hair through her fingers "Mama" she babbled softly, looking at her and smiling._

*End flashback*


End file.
